Guest Post: Apple Walnut Tart with Maple Custard from Baking A Moment

I’m here in Minnesota, a quick pit stop and visit with my sister before the big move to Madison, WI on Friday. Last week was such a whirlwind with the packing and moving and leaving the house in Washington. . but I am starting to get excited about the move.

These next couple of weeks will be all about settling in and unpacking so I reached out to a few friends and asked for some guest post help.

I am SO thrilled to bring you this freaking GORGEOUS Apple Walnut Tart from my friend, Allie today. Allie blogs at Baking A Moment. We recently met in person at IFBC and she is the sweetest person you will ever meet. Her blog is amazingly beautiful and with recipes like Vanilla Malt Layer Cake with Cashews and Salted Caramel and Apple Cinnamon Pancake Cupcakes, you can absolutely see the Pastry Chef in her come shining through.

Allie now has the greatest job in the world- being a mother to her two small boys. And after the kids are off at school, she heads straight to the kitchen where you will find her whipping up something fantastic. Those quiet moments in the kitchen are her oasis. Her desserts are pure loveliness and are so beautiful. My jaw dropped when I saw this apple walnut tart. Stunning.

So. . without further ado, here’s Allie!

Apple Walnut Tart with Maple Custard

Your Guests will be Wowed by this Gorgeous Apple Tart of Roses, with a Toasty Walnut Crust and a Silky Sweet Maple Custard Filling. And it’s Gluten Free!

Hey everybody! I’m so happy to be guest posting for Alice today! My name is Allie and I blog (mostly desserts) over at Baking a Moment. I’ve been following Hip Foodie Mom for a loooooong time and Alice has been such an inspiration to me all throughout my blogging career!

I was so lucky to have had the opportunity to meet her a month or so ago, at IFBC Seattle. You guys, she’s every bit as nice in person as she is here at Hip Foodie Mom. So down to earth, honest, and sweet. I was nervous to meet her but she put me right at ease, and then proceeded to go above and beyond, befriending me and mentoring me in every possible way. Here’s a pic of us having breakfast together with her whole crew (who she introduced me to and let me tag along with all weekend long):

Photo Credit: Nancy of GottaGetBaked.com. Left to right: The Urban Mrs., Gotta Get Baked, Mr. Allie, Moi, and Alice herself, of Hip Foodie Mom, of course.

We’re all besties now 😉 I feel so lucky to be able to count her as a friend. And I’m sooo honored to have been invited to guest post here at Hip Foodie Mom while Alice and her family make their big move from Seattle to Madison!

When we were at IFBC, one of the fabulous things we got to do was to hop a tour bus (in small groups) and get wined and dined by one of several fabulous restaurants in the city of Seattle. Alice and I did not get paired up in the same group together, but we met up the next day (of course!) and compared notes. Alice got to eat at Sitka & Spruce, and she could not stop raving about the fruit tart they served for dessert. She said that it was probably the best fruit tart she’s ever eaten!

Well, I don’t know if this one can reach that lofty status, but from that point on, whenever I think of Alice I’ll automatically associate fruit tarts, so….

This one has a bit of a fall spin, with tart and juicy apples (I used Macoun), a creamy maple custard, and a toasty walnut crust. And it’s gluten free!

Have you seen this “apple pie of roses” floating around on Pinterest? It put a spell over me the minute it appeared in my feed, and I couldn’t wait to give it a twirl! Bad news is, the original seems to have a pretty bad reputation for repeated failure. So I just did my own thang here. I really like how it came out!

Apples are sliced paper thin (a mandoline is useful for this), and bathed in lemony water. Then, the secret is just to microwave the apple slices for a few seconds (40 seemed to be the sweet spot on my microwave), just to make them a little softer and more pliable. Roll the first one in a tight-ish spiral and then just arrange the rest in a concentric pattern all the way around. The custard serves as a little bed for the apples and it holds them in place nicely. It’s a little fussy I guess but I just love the visual impact!

Can you imagine this stunner on your Thanksgiving table! Your guests will be wowed!

If you’re making it in advance, I’d advise brushing the apples with a little warmed apricot jelly mixed with the juice of half a lemon. This will give the tart a gorgeous sheen as well as keep the apples from getting too browned. Although I do sorta like the antiquey look the oxidized apple roses give too!

Apple Walnut Tart with Maple Custard

Your Guests will be Wowed by this Gorgeous Apple Tart of Roses, with a Toasty Walnut Crust and a Silky Sweet Maple Custard Filling. And it's Gluten Free!

Course: Dessert

Servings: 10

Author: Allie, Baking A Moment

Ingredients

For the Walnut Crust:

2 1/2cupswalnut piecesdon't waste your money on halves

4tablespoonsunsalted buttermelted

2tablespoonsgranulated sugar

1egg white

1/4teaspoonkosher salt

For the Custard:

1 1/2cupsmilkI used 1%

6egg yolks

1/2cuppure maple syrup

1/4cupcornstarch

1/2teaspoonkosher salt

1teaspoonvanilla extract

Additionally:

2applesI used Macoun, quartered, cored, and thinly sliced (keep in lemon water until ready to use)

juice of a lemon

1/4cupapricot jamwarmed (optional)

Instructions

For the Walnut Crust:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a food processor or chopper, pulse the walnuts until the are finely chopped, and the pieces are about the size of breadcrumbs.

Place the chopped nuts in a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients, tossing together with a fork.

Press the mixture evenly over the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.

Bake for 15 minutes.

For the Custard:

Pour the milk into a small pot and place over medium heat until small bubbles form around the edges.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the maple syrup, cornstarch, and salt.

Slowly pour the hot milk over the egg mixture, while whisking, to warm the eggs.

Place the mixture back into the pot and place over low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a bubble and becomes very thick.

Stir in the vanilla and transfer to a heat safe container. Lay plastic wrap over the surface. Chill for 2 hours.

Assemble the Tart:

Spread the maple custard in the walnut tart shell.

Warm the apple slices in the microwave until pliable.

Roll a slice of apple into a tight spiral and stand it up vertically in the custard. Continue to arrange apple slices in a concentric pattern, around the first one, building a rose pattern.

Warm the apricot jam, and thin it with lemon juice. Brush this glaze over the apples, for shine and to prevent browning (optional).

11/21/2014: THE APPLE WALNUT TART RECIPE CARD HAS BEEN UPDATED. For those who experienced problems with the custard, our sincere apologies. The apple walnut recipe card above reflects a new custard recipe from Allie. If you try this, please let us know. Thank you and again, our apologies for any issues some of you may have experienced.

Happy Housewarming, Alice! I think you are going to love Madison. Just bundle up, girlfriend! 😉 And thank you so much for the opportunity to talk at all your readers today! Hope you enjoyed the apple walnut tart recipe, Hip Foodie Mom peeps!

Allie that is the most beautiful apple tart I have ever seen!!! Simply gorgeous and amazing! I love it and I am stealing this one for my forever recipes!!! Wow!!!!!!!! Thanks! Good luck with the move to Wisconsin! I am in ND! 😀

Thank you to everyone for the awesome feedback! I’m so glad you all like the tart so much. It was fun putting it together!

I ended up giving it to my neighbor, because we are always overrun with sweets around here (I’m sure you can imagine!). She said it was great! I tasted each of the components individually but not after it was all assembled. The crust is so good. Chewy and nutty and toasty, with a little salty bite that contrasts so nicely with the silky sweet maple custard. They custard is so creamy! And the apples give that tart and juicy fall flavor. I think you guys will love it!

Thanks so much for reading everyone! And have a happy and safe Halloween! 😀

I am going to make this tonight as a practice round for when Christmas time comes. The only thing is that I don’t have a micrwave (I know, weird). I am going to try and steam the apples very briefly to see if that works too. I am really excited about making this, thanks!

Hi Susan,
The next best thing would probably be to blanch them in simmering water. It’s going to be a little bit of a trick to find that sweet spot, where they’re soft but not too soft. Once you get them just so, you might want to plunge them into an ice water bath to stop the cooking process. Maybe just do a handful at a time until you figure out how you like them. Good luck to you! Please let us know if you make this!! Have a great day!

The original “apple pie of roses” recipe had you bake the tart, resulting in the gorgeous, antique-y roses. I’m thinking of putting the chilled tart under the broiler just to “wilt” the roses a bit. Thoughts?

This tart is so beautiful. I wolud like to make it at my home, but I’m wondering how you made those roses? I couldn’t find any instruction for that. Maybe I missed that but I read whole recipe very carefully and I didn’t found that.
I’m really sorry for my english. Hope you will find out what I meant 🙂

Hi Justyna!
Thank you for your comment! Allie says, “Apples are sliced paper thin (a mandoline is useful for this), and bathed in lemony water. Then, the secret is just to microwave the apple slices for a few seconds (40 seemed to be the sweet spot on my microwave), just to make them a little softer and more pliable. Roll the first one in a tight-ish spiral and then just arrange the rest in a concentric pattern all the way around. The custard serves as a little bed for the apples and it holds them in place nicely. It’s a little fussy I guess but I just love the visual impact!” and then read “Assemble the Tart” within the recipe card. Please let me know if that helps! thank you!! 🙂

Hi Justyna! Someone else actually said the same thing. Here is what you should do: “The next best thing would probably be to blanch them in simmering water. It’s going to be a little bit of a trick to find that sweet spot, where they’re soft but not too soft. Once you get them just so, you might want to plunge them into an ice water bath to stop the cooking process. Maybe just do a handful at a time until you figure out how you like them. That is what I did with my microwave. I was figuring it out as I went along”- let us know if this works for you!

I haven’t tried it yet, but you core the apple by cutting straight across the apple with four lines, making a square core. That gives you pieces with a flat edge to slide across the mandolin, and the pretty peel can be on the outer edge. There’s a video out there somewhere 🙂

There are other posts on Pinterest on how to roll them. I had questions too on how to cut them. There are some pictures. (Except don’t add dough to the bottom for this tart recipe) search for: Apple roses by Manuela
That should she you some good pictures
I’m going to try this for Christmas this year. Excited to try it!! 😊

This is pretty but I wish that you would post some process photos or a video instead of just posting pictures of the finished product over and over again. It’s really hard to understand how to assemble all of the apple slices to make them look like roses, and the whole thing is just so complicated that just putting up the recipe and a billion pictures of the same tart from different angles isn’t really helpful at all.

Love this beautiful tart! I just got to the part in the recipe where you are told to insert the apples to the custard…. the only thing is that the custard (first simmered until thickened, then refrigerated until cold), is still in liquid form. I’ve looked up three other custard recipes and they are all baked in the oven. How might you recommend that we proceed with this recipe? Any ideas? I’d love to end up with the beautiful custard tart that you shared in the photos above!

If you look closely, I don’t think they’re long strips, but they appear to be. They look like they’re just thin slices from the mandolin, cut in half: if you mandolin-cut an apple, you get a thin, circular cut. If you slice that in half, you get a half-moon, and I that to me looks what was used here.

Hello. I made this tart as a trial run for Thanksgiving and it did not turn out well at all. The instructions are not written very well in terms of the custard. The crust turned out wonderful though.

The custard instructions do not state how long to cook it. Everything was going well, I was whisking away, tempered the eggs, the custard thickened until it coated the back of a wooden spoon so I took it off the heat and strained it and let it cool. Several hours later, I check on it and it’s liquid. My husband who has made custards before said I didn’t cook it long enough. I showed him the recipe and while he says the recipe itself looks good ( the ingredients and measurements) he said the directions were horrible for a novice. Anyway, he fixed the custard for me and we go onto the apples.

The instructions do not say how thin the slices are. The smallest setting on my mandolin is 1.5mm. I put them in a lemon water bath and microwave for 40 seconds. Check. 40 more. I think I must have microwaved them for a minute and a half and they were still breaking when rolled. I ended up breaking everything up and served it parfait style which didn’t have any visual impact.

Either the directions need to be much more specific or there need to be pictures or a video to follow. I will try this again and maybe see if I can find a mandolin with smaller settings or a different apple. I used Gala.

But the custard recipe needs more explanation. Thank you for your time.

I just made this today. It wasn’t an epic failure or a success either. The biggest problem was that my custard didn’t set! Which is incredibly frustrating. Mostly because last year for Thanksgiving the dessert I made had a custard base also and it didn’t work last year either. I didn’t ever realize that I was making another custard till I was making it this morning. The other problem was I sliced my apples and put them in the lemon water right when I put my custard in the fridge, but my custard wouldn’t set (I ended up making another batch of custard, which didn’t work either). So, my apples sat in lemon water for hours and they a little water logged. After nuking them they just seemed soggy. After the apples where in (which turned out fairly nice) I put the whole thing in the freezer. I’m not sure how it will taste, but it looks pretty.

Hello Kayla,
Thank you for letting us know! Seems there are a few people who have expressed frustration with the custard. I’m so sorry about that. Please let me know if putting the tart in the freezer helped! In the meantime, I’m going to ask Allie if she has any other tips re: the custard.

I’m sure the problems with the custard are just my lack of experience making custard. Some tips would be helpful. Freezing the tart did work in the aspect that it didn’t make a gigantic mess (like my custard pie did last year), but the apples and the tart had a funny texture. I did still get compliments on it. The crust was the best part.

So I tried out this tart and I thought I’d address some of the concerns that I read about in your comments 🙂 For starters:

The Crust
Notice that the recipe card says “mixture” and when you make it, it really is a MIXTURE. It’s deep brown and has the consistency of cake batter unlike many graham cracker or cookie crusts out their which are mostly still powdery. So don’t fret when you can’t really “press” it into the pan like the recipe card says. It’s more of like spooning it into the pan and patting it flat and pushing it to coat the sides. Don’t worry! Even though it’s like batter, it will stick. One last tip about the crust is that it really does cook very fast so either take it out after exactly fifteen mins, if not before! Keep an eye on it! The crust was probably my favorite part of the tart.

The Custard
I too had a hard time cooking the custard. The tempering of the eggs went fine. It helps to have two pairs of hands and to STIR, STIR, STIR. My custard had more of a custard consistency before I added in the eggs, but after the eggs got added, the consistency was lost. However, I kept cooking till it “coated” the spoon. I spent about 30 mins on the whole process. I then let my custard cool, covered it, and placed it in the refrigerator. I checked on it about an hour or two later and even though it was thick, it still was too liquidy for a custard. So, in trying to figure out how to fix the custard, I looked online and found this helpful link:

Even though her custard recipe wasn’t the same, I followed her microwave instructions for custard, What I did exactly was microwave it on high for 1min 30secs, and it came out fluffly like custard around the edges of the bowl. I then microwaved it for another 1min and 30secs, like Anna’s instructions said, and the custard came out fluffy around the edges once more but lost the consistency when I stirred it. So, i deviated a little and microwaved the custard for 2mins and 30sec and this time the whole bowl of custard was the right consistency and did not loose the consistency once I stirred. In addition, the batter was not made rancid due to microwaving so no worries.

The Apple Flowers
Yes, the apple flowers are made using a mandolin set on the thinnest setting. I cored the apples and cut them into fourths in which they were long fourths not cube like fourths. Then I sliced the apple quarters so that the apple slices would be LONG and shaped almost like a semi-circle. I placed the apples in lemon water to prevent browning and that trick definitely worked. For me, I had to bake the apples in the microwave for about 80 seconds before they were pliable not 40secs like the recipe card. Then to make the flowers, you kind of pick a smaller apple, semi-circle slice and roll it tightly to create the center of the rose and stick that spiral into the custard with the peel of the apple sticking up. You want to roll down the length of the semi-circle apple slice! Not the width! Then you just arrange the other semi-circle apple slices around the center spiral by bending them so they enclose the center spiral.

The Taste
This tart is perfect for people who like the consistency of apple pie, who like earthy tasting treats, and who can handle mushy like consistencies. This tart definite;y has many mushy tasting elements. Since the apples get “baked” in the microwave, they lose their crunch. Everyone knows custard is like pudding, however, the crust has a bite to it unlike everything else. In addition, the reason why the tart taste super healthy and earthy and even kind of nutty is because as you’ll notice, not a lot of sugar was really added, and the only flavorings are the vanilla, maple syrup, and the apples. Even though the custard has maple in it, the maple definitely doesn’t overwhelm and is even kind of hard to detect. This is just my view on the taste, if I were to make it again, I would add more sugar to the crust, and more maple to the custard. I am definitely a sweets kinda girl, I can’t really handle soggy textures, and a normally prefer brownies, cakes, and cookies to even tarts with non-baked fruit on top so if you’re like me this may not be the dessert for you.

However, this tart was fun to make. You feel great achieving the final look and it is definitely a healthy dessert to have lying around. It’s appearance is definitely a show stopper!

Any ideas on how to make this dairy free as well? My 12 year old niece is intolerant to any dairy except butter and is gluten free and can’t have any dyes or preservatives; very difficult for finding desserts for her. My sister,in a super awesome Mommy move, adheres to the same restrictions so that Veda isn’t the only one. I would love to surprise them with this special dessert for the holidays.

So, I saw this post a few months ago and decided that I was going to finally bake this for my parents 25th anniversary. Suffice to say this has to one the worst recipes to follow. The crust came out tasting terrible, and I like gluten free desserts! I am a baker, and also teaching at a pastry school. Now, the custard is a totally different story. Made three times and each time it came out horrible. The best way to make this recipe work is to use a walnut tart dough recipe and for the custard do a simple pastry cream recipe and add the maple syrup after the cream and egg mixture has been tempered. I’m also sure that this isn’t just your recipe, but this is a no good recipe.

Beautiful looking, but that’s it.
Made this recipe and it’s terrible! Crust tastes horrible, and custard came out even worse!! Your better off with a walnut tart dough and pastry cream flavored with maple syrup…instead of this mess.

Thank you for the gorgeous recipe, I tried it out myself with a few improvisations (I’m not keen on walnuts) so I did a chocolate and biscuit base instead 🙂 Yours looks simply amazing, I tried my best to recreate it but I’m a complete novice and this was my first ever attempt at anything like this haha you can view my try here http://babysandflowers.tumblr.com/post/85633417681
Thank you again for thiss recipe! 🙂

Hi Hayly,
We just updated the custard instructions as others had problems with it too. . so please take a look above. . the recipe card has been updated!! Thank you! and please let us know if you try this again! Thank you so much!

Love this and will make it – don’t have that variety of apple in the UK, but any red/pink skinned firm variety should work.
The walnut crust on it’s own is going into my forever file – gluten free and interesting! Will experiment with pecans too!
Thank you!

Hello Claire, sounds fabulous! Please let us know when you make it and how it turns out for you! and by the way, we just (on 9/23) updated the custard recipe instructions. . wanted to let you know in case you printed the recipe card already. Cheers!

I tried this tart for thanksgiving. I would say I do not like failure as I do bake a lot . Specially when you have guest at the table . I loved the base ,have to make very sure that the walnuts are fresh. May be another tablespoon of sugar to bring out the sweetness.
As for the custard just a horrible texture . Very embarrassing when I cut it . Very runny even after I took it upon myself to put it on the fire and kept stirring with a whip to get the thickness but still a failure. The next time I am not going to use the cornstarch as it was still raw tasting wit the time suggested by you. That’s why I kept it a little longeron the fire. I found a new flour called Wondra quick mixing flour. Very pretty to look at though . There was not much sweetness to the custard either. I was thought by a chef who cooked for the Kennedys many years ago. When you want to make a dessert ,you do not spare on the butter or the sugar .thanks any how

Hello Marina! Did you make this for Thanksgiving last year? We recently (on Sept 23) updated the custard recipe and instructions above. . so just wondering if you worked off of Allie’s updated recipe card. Thank you for the comment.

Who posts a recipe on a food blog that hasn’t even been tasted after completion…and microwaved apples? No thanks. But this does look gorgeous, I’m off to go locate the authentic French recipe sans microwave.

Hi! Im Making this right now and im wondering if youre supposed to bake it more after you assemble it?? My custard is thick but isnt it supposed to be like the consistency of a creme brulee before firing it? Hope you get this asap! Thanks!!!!!

Hi Krissy, you do not bake it more after assembling. After assembling the rose apples, warm the apricot jam, and thin it with lemon juice. Brush this glaze over the apples, for shine and to prevent browning (this is optional). I’m sorry but I can’t speak to the consistency of your custard. Taste it and if it’s good, you’re good to go! Happy Thanksgiving!

The tart looked gorgeous- I used Rome apples and the color was perfect. The custard was my favorite part, though the apples were good too. I’d modify the crust a bit next time because I thought the texture was a bit too mealy for the smoothness of the custard and apples. I’m so thrilled that something that looked so impossibly beautiful actually came out as promised. Thanks for sharing this!

Hi! I thought your tart was gorgeous! But I had a few questions: For the apples, and when you’re cutting them with the mandolin do you core them at all? And also do you have any other type of crust ideas? I would like to make a gluten free one, but Many of my relatives are allergic to tree nuts, and wouldn’t want them to have a reaction! Thank you!

Hi Josie! Sorry for the late response! Allie, the author of this recipe, says, “Apples are sliced paper thin (a mandolin is useful for this), and bathed in lemony water. A reader wrote the following: “the apple flowers are made using a mandolin set on the thinnest setting. I cored the apples and cut them into fourths in which they were long fourths not cube like fourths.” You can read the rest of the reader’s comment above. It’s the long one. As for the crust, you can look up a recipe for a gluten-free crust. . just google it! I’m sure you can find a bunch using gluten-free flour. Hope this helps!!!

Hi Heather,
You don’t bake the tart again after you’ve spread the custard (which is already prepared) into the baked and ready walnut tart shell. After you’ve arranged the apple roses and brushed with the glaze (optional), it’s ready to serve. There is no additional baking time.

My roommate and I made this tart for fun over the weekend, and it turned out GREAT! We didn’t have a tart pan available to us, so we used a pie tin instead. The crust spread over the edges of the pan overbaked a touch, as it wasn’t meant to be exposed to such direct heat, but overall it was delicious and beautiful and got so many compliments from housemates and guests. Next time I think we’ll need to re-chill the assembled tart some before serving, as slicing proved a challenge, and also to arrange the “roses” in a more slice-friendly pattern (unfortunately the beautiful design dissolved as soon as we took a knife to it). Wonderful recipe, such a treat, and sure to be a hit! Thank you!
Photo of our tart/pie: https://flic.kr/p/rEjKD4

Okay, so nobody worry about the custard. It’s all good. I was skeptical, but with the updated recipe you can totally make the custard right. Here is what I suggest:

– As Ali Ramos/Alex Biera recommended a while back, use more maple syrup. Instead of using 1/2c, I filled my liquid measure halfway between the 1/2c and the 3/4c marks. I think you can add even more and still be safe. That little bit I added provided a rich, more distinctly maple flavor.

– With the heat on medium-high, stir occasionally but don’t be clingy. The custard likes its space. Do watch it, though. AS SOON as you see pea-sized bubbles (they will emerge with some resistance, not rapidly like with boiling water), turn off the heat. The mixture might look lumpy but it has not curdled. Whisk out the clumps and you will have a wonderful thick, creamy custard with the consistency of yogurt. It tastes rich and sweet, yet not overpowering. I can’t wait to see what it will taste like along with the crust and apples.

I can attest to Emma’s Response on 8/13/2015; there’s NOTHING wrong with the recipe. There’s a few things that I would like to add:

I believe that when you are in the final stage of cooking your custard (after you’ve warmed the egg mixture with your milk), you should keep your custard at a MEDIUM temperature. After a little bit of worry (my custard wasn’t thickening), I followed Emma’s instructions and IMMEDIATELY my custard thickened quickly. I think the medium-high is a bit too high for beginners because the custard will begin to form clumps of skin as you are stirring…

I watched a Creme Brulee video on Youtube by Gemma Stafford from Bigger Bolder Baking and she passed her custard through a sieve before transferring it from the stovetop to the baking dish to remove all of the eggy bits. This may be an excellent step if you’ve discovered your custard has cooked too quickly.

But, if you keep the custard at a medium temperature and stir occasionally, you might be able to avoid the clumps all together. A LOW temp would be wayyy too low and take way too much time.

Hi Sue! yes, I would recommend serving right after assembling the apple rose flowers on top. Alternatively, you can make the crust and the filling the day before and the apples the day of serving. Let me know if that helps! Thank you!

This looks wonderful and I would love to try it, but I do not like the maple taste on anything except pancakes. Is there any way I could make this a cinnamon custard? Or even an apple/-cinnamon?Especially since I want to use almonds for the crust instead of walnuts.

Hi Patricia . . since the recipe here is for a maple custard, I would look for a cinnamon custard or apple cinnamon custard (just search for one), or whatever custard you like or are looking for, and then make this with the rose apples on top. I hope you try it! This tart is perfect for the holidays!

Hi! I am going to make this tomorrow, it is goregous! I had a few questions though, should I microwave the slices while they are in the lemony water? Or should i microwave without the water? Second, if i make the custard the evening before, will it not be too stiff to handle or shoud I just wait till the morning? Thank you!

Hi Eline! Sorry, I just saw this!! no, take the apples out of the lemony water before you microwave and microwave without the water and I would suggest making the custard the morning of if you can. Please let me know how it goes!! 🙂

Last night I did a trial run on this recipe to test it for Thanksgiving. I’ve made custard in the past so I wasn’t afraid to try this one. My custard didn’t have any trouble gelling and it came out smooth. However, it tasted powdery. Like the cornstarch powder. It surprised me when I read how much to add since many recipes call for only about two teaspoons give or take. The end product was gorgeous but I was very disappointed in the taste. I guess I will have to research a different boiled custard recipe that I might incorporate the maple syrup into. Thanks for the great idea though!

After reading the comments it looks like many people are not familiar with making custard or the different types. Emma’s post and the follow up comment by Megan are perfect. Even though it has been updated once already I would suggest the author put some of this in a “tips” on her recipe. She is obviously very creative and didn’t realize how many people she would inspire to try something new!

Hi Elona,
For best results, serve on the same day. You can prep the crust and custard separately a day ahead if desired. But I would save the apple roses and assembly for day of. Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

The custard came out amazing for my first time making one! Soo delicious. The walnut crust needed 20 minutes & still was a bit soft in the center when I pulled it out. The apples is where I was frustrated. I cut them on a mandolin very thin and submerged them in a water bath & microwaved….. For FIVE MINUTES!! We have a brand new microwave too. Ugh. I’d suggest large apples. I used 5 medium ones. After they came out of the microwave I submerged in ice water then patted dry before spiraling. My husband of all ppl suggested in his passing (and tasting) to dip each piece in thinned out apricot while spiraling, which actually helped hold them together. I’ll definitely be making this again! Thanks for the recipe

I made this today–inspired by the gorgeous photos.i was in a pinch so used a store-bought gluten-free crust. That was probably a major mistake as the crust was gross and I wish I had made the recipe’s crust! In any event, my custard set up just fine but I wasn’t wow’ed by the taste of it. It wasnt bad at all, just not outstanding. The apple rose situation was a nightmare… And I had just used that same technique for a vegetable tart the day before and a different apple tart earlier in the week. I don’t know why it felt so hard this go around. Ultimately, it looked beautiful despite a number of broken roses. If I had hours to spare I may try to tweak further but all in all I don’t think the recipe is worth the effort. I love the creativity tho and it was a stunning final product!

Lovely recipe and idea. I used the Momofuku Crack Pie Oatmeal Cookie Crust instead and ended up having to whip my custard with a hand mixer because it was a little lumpy — but the end product turned out absolutely beautiful. (And delicious!) Thanks for the guidance — you can check out my results on http://cupofsugarpinchoflove.blogspot.com/2015/12/a-bouquet-of-apples.html (I credited the pie to this website.) 🙂

Made this for Christmas 2015 with a few alterations. 1) subbed flax seed in the crust as it had to be egg free. It was delicious. 2)Made a different custard which was dairy and egg free. Maple syrup as sweetener. 3) Couldn’t get the hang of making rosettes so made just one big rosette of the whole pie. Lots of compliments and it looked beautiful. Plus it was gluten, dairy and egg free.

Hi there! I am considering making this for a get together I have coming up, but there are a few guests who can’t handle eggs or dairy. Is there anything you might suggest to replace the milk and eggs in this recipe (if it’s possible to have it turn out close to the original)?

Hello Elizabeth! Unfortunately, this is not the recipe to replace the milk and the eggs . . you don’t want to mess with this custard. Maybe you could find a vegan custard and just make the walnut crust and the apple roses on top? I’m not sure how that would turn out but just suggesting that since you asked. Sorry!

[…] ages before I decided to cook it. And it is really easy! You can find the recipe and instructions here. The only thing I did differently is that I baked it after decorating with apples. For about 30 min […]

[…] Favorite Treat: Mmmm more apple goodness. This is so gorgeous I wouldn’t even want to take a bite. This rose apple tart looks so heavenly and delicate. I am going to have to try this soon. Fall is the season of apple everything… and this one is definitely on the list. Get the ingredients here. […]

[…] whether you pick them yourself at a local orchard or just grab a few from the grocery store, this apple and walnut tart is a beautiful way to welcome Autumn…especially with the maple custard that accompanies it. […]

[…] making small individual tarts for each of them. So instead I googled for larger recipes and found this one. Such a great recipe, that’s easy to follow and to make. And is especially cool for all you […]

[…] Pie that’s mouthwatering and great for the season, too! Another healthy apple option is an apple walnut tart with maple custard. But if you still want the sugar, (hell its Christmas right?!) check out this popular […]

[…] pretty to eat–almost–is about right, as noted by Hip Foodie Mom. Thank you, Hip Foodie Mom, for writing about and sharing this recipe. The crust is created with walnuts, and I like it! The apples are painted with a mixture of […]

Meet Alice

Hello! My name is Alice. Here, at Hip Foodie Mom, you will find fresh food recipes using local, seasonal ingredients. From meat dishes to vegetarian to Asian inspired dishes, you are sure to find something you like. Thank you for stopping by!